Out of the Darkness and Into the Light
by Saiph Taeveryn
Summary: One kid's life and how it's changed when his father, a GW Pilot, returns after eleven years and needs his help. (2x4 and some pairings between the 2nd generation)
1. The Beginning

Now I've read so many fic's about the generation after the GW Pilots and the majority of them aren't quite as interesting as I'd like them to be, so this is my version of what being the child of a GW Pilot is like. This fic, I noticed, has a slightly violent theme, (reference to rape, alcohol, and violent language), but it gets better as it goes. All of the GW Pilots will be in here with their children.

GW Pilot: Child or Children

Heero: Phoenix (Boy) and Hope (Girl)

Duo: Dual (Boy)

Trowa: Cassandra (Cassie) and Alix (Twin Girls)

Quatre: Kiyo (Boy)

Wufei: Nataku (Girl)

Zechs and Noin: Cristian (Boy)

Note: Yes, this fic has Yaoi. So if you can't handle it, don't like it, are disgusted by it, or think it's wrong just don't read it. I've given you warning so don't take it out on me if you don't listen.

Disclaimer: I own none of the Gundam Wing Characters, don't own the setting, aw hell, I own nothing (everything belongs to Bandi and Sunrise). The children and other random side characters I did make up though!

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Out of the Darkness and Into the Light

Introduction: Just Being

One singular thought had always plagued me throughout my childhood; who was I…really? It was a question I had never been able to answer. I asked my adopted mother, but she couldn't tell me. As for my adoptive father well, I'll get to that later.

Yes, I was adopted. I vaguely recall the details, but it all began when I was three. My real Father, I remember loving him so much, brought me to the orphanage on Colony L2 v33421. He told me that I wasn't safe with him, told me he'd return when everything was alright, and I believed him. I was three fucking years old! How could I not! Then he left…left my life forever… or so I thought. I'm fourteen now. Not a word, not a letter… and I was adopted. Mrs. Kayla was a wonderful woman. She adopted me when I was eight. I've lived with her and her husband ever since.

I'll tell you now; my life's a living hell. Probably wondering why. Well it began about three years ago when my adoptive father and mother were having post marital issues. He started drinking then and didn't stop. He'd hit me or Mrs. Kayla every now and again for no reason at all. I'm sporting two nasty bruises at the moment from the asshole actually. My real problems from him had only just started though. He'd stopped going to work and no one would hire him because he was chronically drunk, so he'd be home when I got back from school. It would be just me and him. I learned quite quickly to avoid him then. Especially after he'd cornered me and tried to rape me. And I'm not a girl either. I took to locking myself in my room after school and until Mrs. Kayla got home. Her presence offered some solace thankfully, or I don't think I'd have maintained myself for so long.

So that was my life at the time. It was about to change. I had no idea of course, but who would have guessed that fate, which had been so cruel to me previously, would decide to play make-up with me. This is the story of that day, and what followed.

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Chapter 1: Hell, then a Ray of Hope

It all began the afternoon before. It was a Friday and I'd stayed late at school helping one of my teachers clean her classroom. Anything was better then home in my opinion. Usually my adoptive father was asleep when I got home, passed out from drinking all day. He'd wake up usually around 5 or so. But unluckily for me he didn't on that day. I entered my home and looked to make sure he was out on the couch…only to find him gone. My heart raced in panic. Where the hell was he? Then I knew. He was behind me, pushing me down into the couch, effortlessly tossing my backpack out of the way. I kicked and screamed, but there was no one to hear me. The neighbors for the most part were still at work, and it was too much distance for them to hear me if they were home. So I had to resort to physical means to escape, just one problem…I was fourteen, he was 40, there was a definite size and muscle difference. For my age I was well built. Slim, but deceptively so. It was all muscle. Even with that though, I was still no match against him. I went down, still fighting, but quickly realilzing I was just tiring myself out dangerously. He pinned me to the couch, the next thing I knew he was unbuttoning my pants. Again I fought but to no avail. It was a lost cause.

Afterwards I laid trembling in his grasp. It took him awhile, but he did fall asleep, and when he did I made my escape. I pushed out from under him, made a grab for my backpack, and then sprinted up the steps not caring in the least that I was unclothed. I reached my room and slammed the door shut, locking it quickly. I forced myself to calm long enough to get dressed before throwing myself down onto the bed, face full in the pillow, and screamed out all my pain, anger, and frustration. So I laid there, trying desperately to console myself about what had happened. It was hours before I fell unconscious from exhaustion, each seeming like its own eternity. That day was the worst of my entire life.

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I didn't awake again until the next morning, and that was to someone pounding on the door to my room followed by the sweet voice of Mrs. Kayla.

"There's someone here to see you Kiyo," she called from just outside my door.

Someone here? To see me? I was surprised, but not in the mood for a visitor.

"I don't want to talk to anybody!" I replied, making sure she heard me. I was firmly resolved never to set foot out of my room, not even if the sky was falling.

"Kiyo, honey, it's important,"

I sat straight up in bed. Important? No one important ever comes to see me…actually no one had ever come to my house to see me. I had no friends at school, no one wanted to get near me, and even though some of my teachers had a vague idea of my home life, they wouldn't ever come to my house.

So I got out of bed and tried to make myself decently presentable, not how I felt at all. I would have liked to have gotten a shower, but that had been out of the question the night before and I couldn't keep this person waiting so long. After a few minutes of forcing myself to stop trembling I emerged from my room quite like a frightened mouse from its home with a hungry cat around. It's awful how being raped destroys one's sense of security and degrades you to fearful scurrying. I hated it.

I found Mrs. Kayla just outside my door, a wonderful smile on her beautiful face. She had long blond hair, a strand of which had fallen out of the bun it had been in and was now hanging down just in front of her left eye. I could feel her dark brown eyes watching me. I avoided them, not wanting to look into them. I knew she knew, but refused to ever discuss it with her. There was nothing she could do about it, ever.

"I'm ready," I said briefly. She nodded, taking my hand, and led me downstairs to our living room.

Uncontrollably I shuddered; once from just being in that room again and a second time at seeing my adoptive father sitting on the other side of the room. He was talking with someone; they had their back to me, but turned towards me when I entered. He had platinum blond hair and eyes that looked to be somewhere between blue and green. I stopped dead in the doorway. I knew that face…

"Kiyo, this is Mr. Quatre Winner," I heard Mrs. Kayla explain behind me. "He's come from the v33421 adoption center…" and then I knew exactly who he was.

"Father?" I asked, very timidly.

He gave a smile, one so familiar that I nearly broke down in tears.

"Yes Kiyo,"

I didn't know what to say…I didn't know what to do…it had been eleven years since I'd seen him. I wasn't even sure I should believe him.

"He's… he's going to take you back with him Kiyo," I heard Mrs. Kayla say. She herself sounded on the edge of tears.

I turned to her and hugged her, feeling guilty in a way.

"He can give you a better home then we can," she said softly. I had no doubt in that.

It all happened so fast. One moment I was hugging Mrs. Kayla, the next saying goodbye, and after that in a car with him, my Father, headed to the Colony Shuttleport. I snapped back to my senses then, realizing that there was one question I had to have answered.

"Why?" I asked when we were about halfway to the Shuttleport. "Why did you come back?"

With a brief little side glance at me he answered my question quite simply.

"Because I love you Kiyo. You're my son. I don't expect you to forgive me for what I did, but I had to. I promise I'll explain when we get home," he replied.

Home? Where was home? But he answered that question before I could ask it.

"We're going to one of the L4 colonies."

"That's half way across Space!" I gasped quite shocked. I guess I wasn't going to see Mrs. Kayla again… I was really going to miss her…

My Father must have seen my reaction because he gave me a sympathetic smile.

"You loved them, didn't you?" he asked me.

"I loved Mrs. Kayla like she was my Mother," was my answer. When I looked up at him and saw the depth of his concern I just knew I would be so much happier with him. He would love me, care for me… never again would my adoptive father lay a hand on me. I'd be safe with him. And for once in my life I had hope.

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I would really like to know reactions to this fic. Was it good? Was it bad? Does it need more detail? When I get some input I'll continue so if you do like it PLEASE tell me. Thanks!


	2. Duo and Dual

Ok, here's the expected chapter two. I hope everyone will enjoy it s much as chapter one, and I introduce Duo and Dual in this one so I hope you like them too. Enjoy!

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Chapter Two: The God of Death and his Apprentice

Well, I must say I was in near shock. My name was Kiyo Winner and I was the son of Quatre Winner, the head of the Winner family the most influential family in the colonies. Not only that, my new home was huge! You could get lost just trying to find the bathroom! But that wasn't the most interesting part. It seemed that my father didn't live alone, but with two others. Their names were Duo and Dual. Now that had been an interesting introduction. I had barely walked through the front door and the next thing I knew I was being introduced to two who could have passed for twins had they been the same age. Father and son I learned they were. Duo was the same age as my father, and he seemed vaguely familiar to me almost like I'd met him before. He had long auburn hair kept back in a braid and the most interesting violet eyes. Beside him was Dual, his son of eighteen years who shared the same violet eyes. His hair was a little darker and much shorter, coming down around his ears. Both were very kind towards me and for once I actually felt like I belonged. But I was still uneasy after what had happened and sought my new room and silence. I was looking out of one of my windows across the expansive backyard when I heard a knock on my door. I chose to ignore it, instead focusing on the little blue bird that was perched just outside my window. It was sitting in its nest in the oak tree that branched out just outside of my window. There it was being a good parent, watching over its eggs with a determined air. _Maybe it will be that way here._

"What are you looking at?" I heard from behind me. If my memory served me right it was Duo, but I wasn't sure so I turned to look at the figure now standing beside me. I was right.

"Nothing really," I replied, giving one of the passive answers that we teenagers were known for.

Duo gave a kind smile and sat down on my bed, just a few feet away from me. I wasn't sure why he'd come, and I was still uneasy around anyone, so I reverted my attention back to the bird on its nest.

It was then I heard a soft chuckle from behind me. I frowned, wondering why he was laughing at me.

"You are so much like Quatre," he commented after awhile.

I sighed.

"I wouldn't know that, would I?" I must have sounded upset. In a way I was. I still didn't understand why, after 11 years, my father decided to bring me here. Not only that, I was still trying to figure out the relationship between my father and Duo. There was something there, but I chose to wait and watch before asking.

"Just give it some time," was the reply I got. "Kiyo," I felt his hand on my shoulder and shuddered subconsciously. I really didn't want to be touched. He must have felt my reaction because he drew his hand back and fell silent behind me for some time. "Well Quatre, Dual and I are here if you need us for anything. Please don't be afraid to ask either. Oh, and before I forget, dinner's in about an hour."

I gave a brief nod, not taking my eyes from looking out of my window. He left, or I thought he did. I didn't really hear him leave, but I wasn't particularly concerned with that at the time. I was debating whether or not I would go to dinner. In the end I decided to grace them with my presence, however I did intend to return to my room as quickly as I could afterwards. So after about an hour of watching the bird, who by now had flown off, I got up and moved to leave, to find Duo in the doorway watching me. I stopped. I hadn't heard him come in and I hadn't heard anything while I'd been thinking. Had he not left? Impossible, I would have heard him. He had to have just entered.

"Ready?" he asked me as I walked up to him.

"I guess," I replied.

So he led me to the formal dinning room. I took it all in, memorizing how we got there for future reference. If I knew where I was going my mind sort of worked like a GPS tracking system. I could never get lost getting to someplace I had been before. It would prove a handy trait later.

But for now I set that thought aside and took the seat offered to me at the dinner table. When we arrived Dual and my Father seemed fairly immersed in conversation, so I listened.

"So how was school last week? You said you had Midterms to deal with," my Father asked. When I had sat down he and Dual had both looked at me briefly, and I sort of knew they'd changed the conversation upon my entry. They'd been talking about me, I was sure of that.

"Yeah. I'm fairly confidant about most of them. Math proved some problems, but everyone I talked to is convinced that they failed," Dual replied.

"Well where did the problems seem to lie?"

"Probability. Our teacher failed to explain it correctly," Dual answered, this time while reaching across the table for the basket of bread. "And it was practically the entire test."

"Well that won't do," Duo put in as he reentered the room from what looked to be the kitchen with napkins.

"Tell me dad, did you ever take Pre-Calc?" Dual asked with a slight grin playing across his lips. He seemed to already know the answer.

"Now you know better you little…" Duo dropped one of the napkins over Dual's head as he passed which was actually quite amusing to watch as Dual shook it off, letting it fall right onto his plate of food.

"It's just a simple question," Dual pushed. He gave me a sly smile then and I couldn't help but laugh a little. This was proving very interesting.

"You know full well that I never took anything remotely like Pre Calculus. I never needed it," Duo retorted. By now he and my father were both smiling as well.

"What about you Kiyo? Did you have to deal with Midterms?" Dual asked me from across the table. "You're in eighth grade, right?"

I shook my head slightly.

"I'm in ninth and yes, I had Midterms last week to," I responded just before starting on the food on the plate in front of me.

"How are you in Ninth?" Dual asked, this time with his mouthful which made it come out muffled.

"They let me skip a grade last year," I replied. Out of the corner of my eye I could see my father and Duo pass a look that vaguely reminded me of the look someone gives you when it's exactly what they expect. That made me smile more. Finally I was around people who could understand me.

"Well, I guess you'll be going to school with me," Dual said after a moment of swallowing his food.

So went the first dinner with my new family. Afterwards I returned to my room and got a shower, something I wanted desperately. But even afterward I still didn't feel clean. I went to bed that night wondering what school would be like. One thought stuck in my mind noticeably as I sunk into the cushy softness of my new bed and shut my eyes. _Maybe I'll make a friend._ But I would just have to wait and see.

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Well that's it. Review and tell me if you like it please. Thanks!


	3. School

Yeah, I made this one on time. Yey! Well read and tell me how you like it.

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Chapter Three: School.

The next morning I woke to the wonderful smell of breakfast. It was six in the morning, an hour before Dual had told me to be up. So I slipped out of bed, made sure I was properly dressed for the day, and made my way towards the kitchen only to find that I was the last one to get up. Father, Duo, Dual were all already up and out of bed. They were talking, and rather then have the conversation switch upon my entrance I decided to wait and listen just out of sight behind the door in the dinning room. There I could hear them all clearly without being seen.

"We got an E-mail from Heero this morning," Duo said. I could now clearly recognize their voices so I knew exactly who was talking. "It's an emergency and we have to go to Earth. That means it's going to be just you and Kiyo for a few days."

"What's the emergency?" Dual asked. Silence followed and I thought they may have heard me, but after some minutes there was a response.

"The same as before," my father replied. "Don't worry though, Heero promised it wouldn't be anything remotely like last time."

"But all the same, you know what to expect Dual," Duo put in.

"Only a few days?"

"If it's more we'll send you a message," my father answered.

"If we can," Duo corrected just after. "Make sure Kiyo survives his first days at school. He's going to be a perfect target, being a year younger then everyone else."

So they were leaving? Just after bringing me here they leave? I wanted to cry, but that would have only made things worse. They would've heard and then I'd have to explain my eavesdropping. I had heard enough. I entirely forgot my hunger and sulked back up to my room in silence. A little while later my Father came up to tell me he was leaving on a business trip of sorts and that Duo was going with him. He promised it would only be a few days; he had no idea I knew he was lying.

"I'm sorry I won't be here tonight to hear about your first day of school. You'll have to tell me when I get back," he said.

I merely nodded in return.

"Well, Dual's going to be in charge while we're gone so listen to him please."

"I will," I replied half-heartedly. I still couldn't believe he was leaving me again.

"You know I wouldn't leave unless it was important," he said. He was worried. He knew I was upset.

"I know," I knew I wasn't making this easy on him. I didn't intend to.

He looked down at his watch then and frowned.

"It's time for you and Dual to be heading off to school. I promise I'll see you in a few days."

Little did I know that it would be far sooner then a few day's before I'd see him again.

I'd always been secretive about the fact that I was a year younger then the other students. I got promoted a grade in fifth, when they realized I was at an intellectual level higher then the average fifth grader, even higher then most sixth graders. I got perfect scores in all my classes and, had I allowed anyone to see my tests and papers, would have been treated like an alien. Not that I hadn't been treated that way already. I so wish it would have been the same at this school, but things started going wrong from the start. My first class was on Global Politics. Not an average course. My new school was a private school by the way, I learned that a little later but that's sort of important to know to understand what happened in my first class of the day.

So I walked in after one of the school administrators who handed my transcript over to the teacher and left promptly. The teacher was a woman in her late thirties with dark brown hair and green eyes. She seemed nice, but that niceness didn't keep her from initiating the second worse day in my life.

I stood there tensely as the teacher read over the transcript, in great detail I must add. Everyone else in the class of about 20 had their eyes on me. I took one glance at the bunch then quickly lowered my gaze. All of them looked to be from well off families, High Upper Class was my final conclusion. That could present a problem later. Actually it would present a great problem later, especially with the other boys.

"Kiyo Winner, from _the_ Winner family?" the teacher asked me, surprise clear on her face.

I didn't answer, not really sure at the time what she meant. No one had ever paid so much attention to me, and now I had the entire class hanging on my words. It shook me deeply.

I had hoped she'd give up once I proved I wouldn't answer, but she persisted further.

"Are you the son of Mr. Quatre Winner?" she asked.

I knew the answer to that, but wasn't sure whether I should answer or not. So I hesitated, and inadvertently gave my answer.

"Well you must be," She said after a moment, coming to her own conclusion.

After that she continued reading off my transcript. "Age 14… you're too young to be in this class."

I paled as most of the class gave out a gasp. I didn't really want them to know that. _Please, no more for today…_ I thought. But it was far from over.

That done the teacher had finally put my transcript down on her desk.

"Now where to put you…" she said aloud as she looked over the classroom for an open desk. There were a few that I could see; one was next to a girl who was chatting loudly with those around her, another was next to a boy with glasses who had his full concentration on the textbook in front of him, and the third was in the midst of a group of boys all of which were eyeing me with mock kindness. I hoped for the seat near the kid studying but I was denied my wish as was becoming quite the usual occurrence.

"Go sit next to Jake and his friends for now," she said while pointing to the desk in the midst of the group of boys. I nodded and slowly went to sit at my new desk, quite apprehensively. They all looked like your average bullying group, which really didn't frighten me because I could hold my own if I wanted to, but they were all about twice my height and size.

"Hey, new kid," I heard from my right. I turned towards the sound and the next thing I knew a pencil was flying straight at my face. I barely dodged it, but sat back up to find most of the class laughing at me. I knew this day was going to be a long one.

At about eleven the bell rang signaling lunch. Without hesitation I grabbed the lunch I'd made this morning at home and followed the crowd to the lunchroom. There were only a couple hundred students at this school I'd found out and all ate lunch at the same time. So I did the obvious thing and looked for Dual. I found him after a few minutes, but he was surrounded by a large group of giggling girls his own age. Not wanting to bother him or be a nuisance I went to find somewhere away from everyone else. I had just located the perfect spot and sat down when I was confronted by Jake and his groupies. They walked up to the table I was at and surrounded it. I paid them no mind though, thinking it was probably just mistaken identity, and continued removing my lunch from the paper bag it was in.

"Hey, new kid, what do you think you're doing?" Jake asked me after a few seconds of observation.

"I'm eating. Do you have a problem with that?" I replied. I really wasn't in the mood to play games, and the whole "new kid" thing was starting to annoy me.

"What if I do?" he retorted smugly, thinking it was the perfect comeback. His friends around us all imitated the same annoying smug smile. It was pathetic to watch.

"Guess you'll have to live with it," I responded promptly. All his friends made mock looks of surprise at that.

"Did you hear him Jake?" one of his friends asked him wide eyed. The boy had raven hair and a very malicious disposition, one almost rivaling the one Jake had. "Guess he doesn't know the way things run around here."

"We'll have to give him a little lesson then, won't we," Jake countered most menacingly. I felt more then saw the kids behind me move, and dodged out of their grasps just in time, ducking out of their circle through the opening they formed as they were about to grab me. I wasn't fast enough though; two others had me before I could sprint away.

"LET ME…." But the rest was cut off as a hand fell over my mouth. I was keenly aware of being dragged away until all of a sudden I spotted someone's fist coming straight at my face. After contact my world swam in darkness. As I tried to get my eyes focused the second blow came, this time to my stomach. I doubled over, but was kept up by whoever was holding me.

"Think he's had enough?" I heard someone say.

"Doubtful, two more should do it."

I braced myself for another hit, one that never came.

"You leave my brother alone bastards!" I heard distantly, recognizing the voice as Dual's and nearly crying out in joy.

There were shouts of surprise all around me, and whoever had been holding me suddenly let go, causing me to fall into…grass? I guessed that they had dragged me outside, which had proven true I later found out.

"Hey, Kiyo, are you ok?" I heard from beside me now. I forced my vision to focus and saw Dual there beside me, looking concerned.

"They surprised me, or I would have had them," I said softly, knowing full well that that was not the case. I wanted to sound like I had at least partially been on things…yeah, right.

Dual knew full well I was bluffing but managed a laugh at that.

"Come on, let's get you to the nurse and hope dad and Quatre never find out," he said with a small smile while helping me up to my feet. He was so nice, I was really thankful to have him as a brother, even if he wasn't really. I didn't think the day could get much worse, but it could…and would.

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well, that's chapter three. I hope it was enjoyed!

Lil' Miss Tipsy: No, Kiyo's clueless to that. And no, he won't be with Dual. Dual actually has a GF. As for the other's they'll all be introduced by chapterfive or six depending how things fall. Phoenix will be in the next chapter though for sure. Thanks for the review and I hope you liked this chapter to.


	4. Terrorists

Ok, It's 8:40 on Friday the 18 of Februrary and I did update! So I hope it's enjoied and i'm sooooo sorryI couldn't put it up sooner. Blame school or I would have had this up last week.

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Chapter 4: Terrorists?

I spent the remainder of the day in the nurse's office after my lunch experience. At two, just after the bell rang to announce the end of the school day, Dual came and we walked out to the parking lot of the school to find his car.

"Looks like you're going to have a bruise," he pointed out as we got into his car. I knew he was referring to my left cheek where I'd been punched earlier. It still hurt like hell if someone touched me there, but not as much as it had before.

"I'll live," I replied.

So Dual drove us home. He made a snack once we got home while I began my homework. After setting a plate with a peanut butter sandwich on it next to me he moved off to another room to watch TV for a while. So I sat alone, nibbling on the sandwich and mulling over math homework for about an hour or so. It was then that I heard a sound from the dinning room…something that sounded like breaking glass.

I looked from my seat in the kitchen towards the door leading into the dinning room (a door which at was closed at the moment). Still on edge and not caring to take chances I got up and moved silently to the kitchen counter which was set up in two parts forming an island on one side that was between the other counter and the doors to both the hall and dinning room. Once there I opened the closest drawer, luckily finding the kitchen knives, and picked up the biggest one I could find along with a considerably smaller one that I could throw. Then I waited, listening. I heard movement. More then just one person was in the dinning room now.

In my mind the situation was possibly life threatening. I had heard breaking glass and there were now people (not just one, but many) in the dinning room of my house. My parents weren't home and wouldn't be for days and I was alone with my brother who probably had no idea what was going on. So what do I do?

In moments I was moving towards the door that lead to the hall. If I could make it passed the dinning room entrance in the hall (a door that was also closed at the moment) I could go warn Dual. Just one problem, the people in my dinning room decided to go exploring and opened the door from the dinning room to the hallway just before I set foot out of the kitchen. Since the door opened towards me though I had a split second to duck out of sight to the right and crawl back behind the counter gaining the element of surprise before they could investigate the kitchen. Once sitting behind the counter I chanced a brief look around the corner and was rewarded with a small glimpse of the invaders. I saw about five, all dressed heavily in black to the point where it was impossible to tell who they were. There were more for sure and two of them were walking towards the kitchen. All of them had guns which put me and Dual at an extreme disadvantage. Definitely not the best home situation.

My breath caught in my throat as I heard cautious footsteps on the tile floor of the kitchen. In moment's those two would come around the counter and see me. Against my better judgment I decided to take action, jumping up so that I had a perfect target not even five feet from me. Without hesitation I launched the smaller of the knives I had at the closest invader, gaining a somewhat crude satisfaction when I heard him fall to the floor with dull thump. Now just one left… but when I moved to strike the other intruder I found a gun aimed squarely at my head.

"Drop it," the man said to me, nodding slightly to the knife in my hand.

I was in no position to protest so I dropped the knife, which fell to the floor with a loud clang. I was hoping to gain Dual's attention. I found out later that he'd fallen asleep in front of the television and had been surprised when the invaders woke him so it didn't work. But it was a nice try.

About a half an hour later Dual and I were tied to chairs in the dinning room while our captors spread out, searching our house for something. They wouldn't tell us what. They left two to guard us. Once we were alone with our guards in the dinning room Dual decided to take action. I had to say, I was awfully surprised by the fact that he could remain so calm during the entire event. There was something about him that was…well to say the least it was as if this wasn't an unusual situation to him. And it also seemed like he knew exactly how to deal with these situations.

"Hope you guys aren't planning to use us as hostages. If you did well… you're sorta screwed. Dad's away on business for the week," Dual said, taunting them. Neither of the guards paid him any attention. Both just continued their conversation.

"Guess that's a yes. Well it was a good try. You guys did have the silent thing down. Didn't count on Kiyo here being a problem though did you? Probably didn't even know he existed. Serves you all right, he should have gotten the other guy as well," Dual paused a moment to see if he was getting a reaction. Slowly through out that last sentence both guards had been annoyed visibly. I was surprised to say I actually understood Dual's goal then. He wanted to annoy them to death. It was a great plan…if we had a way of untying ourselves. Dual mustn't have thought of that.

"So what is it you want anyway? If it's important it won't be here. Dad probably took it. Guess that means you're screwed there too. Oh well…"

"Will you SHUT UP!" One of the guards finally yelled.

"Make me," Dual replied, his tone switching to one of deadly calm. It made me very afraid.

"Oh I'll make you you bas…" the guard was cut off by the bullet that entered his right temple. In the time it took for that guard to reach the ground the other guard received two bullets to the chest, falling in mid grab for his gun. I turned to where the bullets originated from to see…a boy my own age? He was perched on the seal of the window that was broken in a way that reminded me very much of a cat. He had dark brown hair, some of which he kept irritably brushing out of his face, and cobalt eyes that were cold and calculating holding no warmth I could tell like Dual's did. The boy jumped down into the room with an almost inhuman grace and made his way toward us. Judging from the smile Dual wore he was a friend of sorts I concluded.

"It's about damn time," Dual said as the boy removed a knife from his belt, cutting the ropes holding Dual to the chair before doing the same to mine.

Once done the boy merely looked at him before shrugging.

"Would you rather have done it yourself?"

"A little sooner would be nice Phoenix," Dual replied. "What are you doing here anyway?"

Phoenix's only response was to point to me.

"Kiyo? It's too soon though. Dad said they wouldn't start on him for at least another year. Not everyone has the excessive skills you do Phoenix. Some of us are mere mortals you know," Dual said, the last part with a hint of amusement that brought a shadow of a smile to Phoenix's lips.

That smile, however small, faded moments later though as Phoenix gave his very serious answer.

"Something went wrong, but we can't talk about it here," Phoenix replied as he walked back over to the window. "I was sent to bring you both to Earth. We're leaving now."

Dual gave an audible sigh before he began to follow Phoenix.

"Just promise me you'll keep the life-threatening stunts to a minimum while we've got Kiyo. If anything happens to him I'm dead twice over," Dual muttered.

Phoenix raised an eyebrow before turning those cold eyes upon me.

"Great job so far," he answered. At that I self-consciously reached up to my bruised cheek and was rewarded with a wave of searing pain. I made a mental note not to do that again as I followed Dual and Phoenix out the dinning room window and stealthily out of the yard and down the street.

"Where's your car?" Phoenix asked as he looked about him.

We were on the street now, which was a good distance from the house. People were walking along casually not even 10 feet from us. They had no idea that we'd just come from a house full of terrorists…didn't have a care in the world probably. It was an interesting concept.

"Back at the house," Dual replied.

"Well that won't do…" I watched as Phoenix's eyes roamed the streets, a hint of mischief evident just below their normal coldness. So he did have feelings…

"Ah-ha," his eyes settled on a bright red two seat convertible on the other side of the street. By now the people I'd seen earlier had moved off and we were alone on the street.

On the other side of me Dual's eyes fell on the same car.

"You thinking what I'm thinking?"

I turned just in time to see a sly little grin on Dual's lips. Before I knew it both were heading for the car. I followed, not quite sure what those two were up to, but strangely interested anyway.

Dual stopped just short of the car and spent a few moments taking in full all of the surroundings.

"Clear."

At that Phoenix jumped over the door of the car and into the driver's seat, pulling out his knife again. I watched, disbelieving what I was seeing more in more with each passing moment. He'd hot-wired the damn thing in less then a minute!

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" I asked suspiciously. If I wasn't mistaken this fully fell within the boundary of Auto Theft.

"Just get in," Dual replied as he gave me just a minute shove towards the car.

With a quick look at the two, showing me both weren't worried in the least; I opened the now unlocked passenger door and climbed in. It was then it dawned on me that there were only two seats, one occupied by myself and the other by… Phoenix was DRIVING!

"Um…hey, why's he driving?" I asked somewhat shakily. I was uncomfortable with Dual driving…and he had a license. Phoenix though, being my own age, didn't even have a permit!

Dual jumped up and sat in between Phoenix and I on the edge of the top-cover.

"Oh he does this on a normal basis," Dual replied with a slight smirk.

A normal basis… who the hell was this kid?

Beside me Phoenix put the car in gear and pulled out into the street doing a full 180 and making a b-line for the shuttleport. Terrified I closed my eyes, finger-nails fully embedded into the seat. For once I was glad I wore my seatbelt.

> > > > > > >

So that's chapter 4. Everyone else should come in next chapter... at least I hope to get that far next chapter. Thanks for the reviews as always!

Lil' Miss Tipsy: I'm sorry I made you wait so long. You're lastreview was heartwrenching and i'm sorry I couldn't get this up sooner today. Trying to balance advanced clases, music lessons, homework (the neverending piles i've accumulated), and writting's no easy task. But i'll try harder to get this story updated each week.

Stary Angel1: Thanks. I'm glad you like it so far. I wasn't sure how this fic would turn out just because i'm doing things differently. It's the first time i've used 1st person and my themes are a little more violent then usual. I'm happy you like it though. Thanks again for the review!


	5. Earth

Ok, here's chapter 5. On time this week thanks to snow! I love the stuff (Especially when it gives you two days out of school!)

> > > > > > >

Chapter 5: Earth

"So where'd you learn how to throw knives?" Dual asked as the three of us entered into the colony shuttleport. The question sort of surprised me.

"How did you know about that?" I asked.  
"The terrorists were talking about it. They said you took out one of their best by lodging a knife in his throat," Dual replied, a small smile on his face. "Normal people don't just know that sort of stuff."

"Oh and this is normal?" I exclaimed, meaning everything that had happened since the day began. Dual knew it to. He merely smiled though.

"You still have to tell me."

"Practice," I replied softly. "What were they after?" I thought a quick subject change was in order.

But Dual didn't fall for it.

"Practice?" Dual asked. "You're the last person I'd expect to practice throwing knives,"

"Maybe you don't know me so well," I replied before thinking. I instantly regretted it as Dual assumed a hurt expression.

"Yeah, maybe I don't. But it's only because you make it so difficult," he replied.

Silence fell then between Dual and I. I wanted to fix things, I knew I'd screwed up badly, but I just wasn't sure how to.

Phoenix came back then…I hadn't even realized he'd left us.

"We're on the next shuttle to Earth. It leaves in about twenty minutes or so," he said.

"Then we'd better get there," Dual answered.

So the three of us made our way through the crowded shuttleport in silence. We were going to Earth.

>>>>>>>

I'd never been to Earth before. It was night when we arrived and I'll never forget when I first stepped out of the shuttleport and looked up into the nigh sky. There were so many stars scattered everywhere. There were thousands….no millions of stars! And in the center of the sky, shining silver in full brightness was the moon. It looked so different here then from space. Here it looked so calm and tranquil. In the colonies it was too much like a giant graveyard.

"Beautiful isn't it?"

I was startled out of my thoughts when Dual said that. It was the first thing he'd said to me since the incident in the colony shuttleport.

I merely nodded in response.

"Hey, Kiyo, Sorry about earlier,"

What the hell….why was he apologizing?

"No. Don't be," I replied "I'm just not sure who to trust yet. I'm sorry,"

I felt a hand rest on my shoulder and looked up to see Dual smiling.

"Don't worry about it."

"Are you two done now?" Phoenix asked then which brought both Dual and I back to reality.

"Yeah. Come on, Dad and the others are waiting," Dual explained as he followed Phoenix towards the parking lot, probably to hotwire another car. As much as I had always wanted an ordinary life, now I was beginning to think it would be vastly overrated. I smiled as one thought struck me. I wouldn't give this up for anything.

>>>>>>>

We came to a stop with a slight jolt in front of what could have been the home of some sort of royalty. Man, this place dwarfed my house by at least tenfold!

"Here?" I asked.

"No. We walk the rest of the way," Phoenix replied as he and Dual were getting out.

"Oh…" so I got out and followed the two down the street. We walked for about twenty minutes before slipping into the yard of your average sized house.

At first glance the entire place was dark, no lights on in any of the windows…nothing.

"Um…are you guys sure this is the right house?" I asked as we walked up to the front door.

Phoenix merely gave me a side glance that had "shut-up" written all over it.

So I fell silent and watched as Phoenix drew a key from the pocket of his jeans and opened the door. We entered into the house, a house that was the size a house _should_ be. Dual and Phoenix headed straight for some stairs that lead to a basement and I followed.

The stairs lead to a long hallway with a number of other doors branching off of it, six that I could see but the hallway turned off to the left a good way down so I couldn't be sure yet how many rooms there actually were. My guess was the basement was actually bigger then the house, which proved correct later. But now I followed Dual and Phoenix down the hall and around the corner which lead to an open room at the end.

"Hey Dad," Dual said as he walked up to Duo, who was waiting for us in that room.

Duo had a worried expression at first, but that changed when he saw us. He gave a smile, one of relief.

"I wasn't sure what to expect after watching the news earlier," Duo said while getting up from the seat he'd been inhabiting when we'd entered. "Are you both ok?"

"Never better," Dual answered with a rueful grin. "Who's hurt?" he asked right after though. It was a question that had been bugging him since Phoenix had mentioned it. I could just tell.

"It's Alix," was Duo's reply.

This made me wonder who Alix was.

"Crap…how badly?"

"She's blind Dual."

There was a pause and Dual paled considerably.

At his side his fist clenched and his head lowered slightly. He wasn't just upset, he was mad.

"Was it those same bastards who came after us?"

"Yeah," Duo replied softly. "Do you want to see her?"

Dual gave a slight nod, still trying to keep his rage in check. This Alix girl must have been a close friend of his.

"I'll take him," Phoenix offered. Duo gave an appreciative look and with that Phoenix lead Dual back down the hall.

"What's going on?" I asked once the other two had gone. "Where's Father?"

"I'm glad you asked that Kiyo," Duo replied. "There's a lot to talk about,"

So I was told, told everything all at once. I found out the terrorists were not only after Dual and I, but an important disk that Father had. As for Father…well that was the surprising part. Last year in history class I'd learned about the incidents of AC 195 and the Gundams that had, in essence, brought peace. Well, go figure, both Duo and my Father were Gundam pilots. Not only that but so was Phoenix's Dad and about three others, one a former member of OZ. I had just too many questions after that.

"So who's Alix?" was my first question.

"She's one of Trowa's twin daughters. She was the one who was supposed to pilot Heavyarms because she proved more apt at it then Cassandra, her sister," Duo answered.

"But now she can't…"

"No."

"Is that why you had Phoenix come and get Dual and I? Are one of us to pilot Heavyarms?"

"No. But since Alix is out for the count Dual has to Pilot Deathscythe to account for the loss," Duo replied.

"Deathscythe's yours right?" I asked, getting a nod in return. "And he can?"

"Yeah. Dual's been trained for it. He would have come with Quatre and I in the first place but we weren't going to leave you alone."

"What am I here for then?"

"First you've got to answer my question. Do you want to help us or not?"

Help or not help? Well there was absolutely no question in my mind what I was going to say. Duo had already explained to me who they were fighting. It was almost a mirror image of what had happened before. Some military organization was planning a coup d'etat and we were all that was keeping them from gaining complete control over everything. Of course I was going to help!

"I want to help," I replied. I was so very determined that it made Duo smile.

"Then you're going to be trained to pilot Sandrock, Quatre's Gundam,"

The thought awed me. I was going to be a Gundam Pilot.

> > > > > > > >

I have to say, that when I logged on to the internet last Monday and saw so many reviews I was practically jumping for joy. Just ask my mom, it's the happiest she's seen me in a while. SO THANK YOU! I'm soooo happy you all like my fic!

Armygundamgirl: I'll try to make them longer, but I'm already running into the problem that my time is very limited to write this. I'd love to spend all of my time on this, but I just can't. But I'll see what I can do.

Duo's hanyou:He doesn't know yet, but he'll find out later. As for what he'll do well, you'll just have to wait and find out.

Lil' Miss Tipsyiwuvyaoi: I hope this answered some of your questions. And yes, Phoenix is a guy. And I'll make a huge effort to post chapters as soon as I can get them out, don't worry.

nightcrawls: Would you really? I'd like that. The thought of blowing up all of my piles of homework is appealing.

Stary Angel1: Yeah, I hate homework, but you have to do it so there's no way around it unfortunately. I hope you liked this chapter too.


	6. Dual's Girlfriend

Chapter 6: Dual's Girlfriend

"It doesn't hurt Dual, really it doesn't."

I was standing in the doorway of what looked to be a small bedroom at the moment watching Dual as he fretted over the girl who was lying on the only bed in the room. She had light brown hair and looked to be closer to Dual's age then mine. The one thing that gave her identity away to me were the bandages that were wrapped around her eyes. This was Alix. The thing that really caught my attention though was the fact that her hand was resting in Dual's. It looked to me like she was his girlfriend.

"But…" Dual was troubled at the moment. In truth it was hard to pinpoint exactly what he was feeling, just because his emotions kept changing so quickly. One moment he looked angry, the next upset, and the next troubled like he was now. One thing did remain constant though, he kept his voice calm when talking with Alix. His voice wasn't betraying his emotions at all.

"I'm fine now Dual," Alix insisted. She gave a smile to try and convince Dual, but it just wasn't working. He just looked more worried then before.

"Who the hell are you?"

I was so freaked by that that I nearly fell headlong into the bedroom. Actually I just barely caught myself in time. The voice had come from behind me, so once I regained my stability I turned on whoever was standing there… whoa, what the hell? Was I seeing double?

The girl I was now facing had the same light brown hair as Alix and the same face as far as I could tell. She had bright green eyes, probably the same color as Alix's I guessed. A twin?

"Didn't you hear me? Who are you and why are you spying on my sister and her boyfriend."

If this was Alix's twin they seemed complete opposites in personality. Alix had been nothing but soft-spoken and polite as far as I could tell. This one, well lets just say her attitude was enough to stop an army dead.

"I'm not spying!" Was what came out first. One of those, I have to cover-my-butt reflexes I guess. Lame is what comes to mind after one of those.

"Sure you're not," she replied rolling her emerald eyes. She took a moment to peek around the door and into the bedroom, getting Dual's attention and motioning for him to come over. Which he seemed to grudgingly do.

"What is it Cassandra?" Dual asked as he approached the girl.

"Do you know this pipsqueak?"

"Leave him alone Cassie. He's my brother" Dual replied shortly. He was more interested in Alix then anything else at the moment.

"Oh, so this is the infamous Kiyo Winner I've heard so much about," Cassandra replied as she looked me over, cold emerald eyes summing me up. "And Phoenix actually considered being your partner? His judgment must have gone south."

What the hell was she talking about? I looked to Dual who had gained a curious expression.

"He's working with Phoenix? I thought Quatre was going to train him."

"No. Let's face it, Quatre's a strategist. We can't have our only strategist preoccupied with training some idiot who's never even piloted a mobile suit before."

"So why's dad not doing it then?"

Cassandra merely looked at him.

"He got assigned a job," She said simply.

"So they're on the move again I take it?"

"Naturally. We nearly flattened their last stronghold. We should have had them!"

There was a strained silence after that. I wasn't sure what they were even talking about so I just played the ignorant fool that I was turning out to be.

"Yeah well, things don't always go as planned," Dual whispered a few moments later before turning and going back to Alix's bedside.

So again I was alone with Miss Queen-of-the-Damned-Planet. I mean that extremely sarcastically by the way.

Luckily for me she had fallen into a melancholy silence and was walking off down the hall.

So I went back to watching Dual and his Girlfriend…but again, that didn't last long.

I never heard his footsteps or anything. One moment nothing was there, and then the next Phoenix was standing beside me, looking into the room Dual and Alix were in. When I notice him I gave him a questioning glance, hopping he'd explain to me what the hell was going on.

"There was an explosion," he said softly. "A piece of metal caught her across the face."

"You were there?" I asked, just as softly.

He nodded, moving back to lean against the wall beside me. I turned to face him; putting my back to the entrance to the room Dual and Alix were in.

"That's what happens in war. There are casualties."

"Otherwise it really couldn't be called a war," I answered, not realizing I had sort of finished his thought for him.

He gave a slight smirk, probably the closest thing to a smile that I'd ever get out of him.

"Come on," he said, standing up straight and stretching a little. "The others just got back. They want to meet you."

So I followed Phoenix anxiously, knowing that the _others_ were probably the Gundam Pilots.

> > > > > > >

Phoenix lead me upstairs to, what I thought, was the living room of the house. Six were gathered there, two of which were Duo and my Father. All were male, and all looked about the same age as Father and Duo, except one who looked a little older.

When we entered the room I froze, shyness getting the better of me. Six sets of eyes fell on me. Most just like Cassandra's cold and calculating.

"Come here Kiyo," my Father said to me. He was sitting next to Duo on one of the two green couches in the room. I thought he looked tired, but it could have been the lighting in the room.

I obeyed, but only after Phoenix nudged me further into the room. I felt really embarrassed for some reason; it was almost like I'd walked into a party naked… my mind froze at the thought. _No…don't think about that…_

I was in the middle of the room when the memories started to come back. Someone to my right said something, but I didn't hear it. I was no longer there in that living room, I was in another…one all too familiar…

_My mind was in shock. Rough callous hands were running the length of my torso, lingering at my waist…and lower… "No!" I screamed. But my screams were muffled by the mouth against my own. Even if my screams somehow managed to escape, there was no one to hear me. I was alone with this monster, so terribly alone. My legs were being spread apart forcefully, and then pressure…_

"NO!"

I was struggling in someone's embrace.

"LET ME GO!"

But the one holding me wouldn't relent. I fought with all my might, but even with the added strength lent by desperation I was still no match against the one holding me. My mind was numb, and I couldn't seem to remember where I was or what was going on. All I knew was that I had to get away before I could be hurt again.

"Calm down," the one holding me breathed into my ear.

That voice didn't register in my mind at first…but after a few moments my mind managed to clear enough to where I could recognize it. It was Phoenix who was holding me.

I was panting from exertion and couldn't see anything. My head was buried against his chest, hiding the room from my vision. I could vaguely make out other voices, concerned voices. But that all seemed so distant. All I could understand at the moment was Phoenix and the fact that he was making the fear disappear, disappear in a way that could be compared to the sun melting away the morning dew from the grass.

I closed my eyes trying to catch my breath and collect my scattered thoughts. Where was I? _Living Room,_ my mind answered back. Again the trigger was switched and the memories tried to make their way to the surface. My body convulsed suddenly in Phoenix's grasp. _Not again_… But there wouldn't be a second time. Phoenix's embrace tightened in response, drawing me back into the light of reality instead of the darkness of those haunting thoughts.

Slowly he guided me backwards, and then I felt something push against the back of my legs. The next thing I knew I was sitting in a cushioned chair staring into Phoenix's cobalt eyes. He was kneeling in front of me. Behind him I could see the others. Father and Duo both looked extremely concerned.

"What happened?" my Father asked as he came to stand beside the chair I was sitting in.

But I couldn't tell them…I just couldn't.

> > > > > > > >

Ok, I know it took a LONG time to get this chapter up, and I'm sorry. I had a SEVERE case of writers block brought upon by emotional stress from what little private life I have. Yeah, it was one of those: you tell someone you love them but they love someone else…and well it just goes downhill from there. But I'm intrigued with my idea for the next chapter and plan to write most of it tomorrow and Monday so I should have it up fairly soon. And thank you for yelling at me. It motivated me to finish this chapter. Sorry again about the wait.

Lil' Miss Tipsyiwuvyaoi: Be happy now! And the romance will really start to happen next chapter since the connection has now been established. I really hope that this one was worth the wait, and I will really work my hardest to get the next chapter up ASAP! The whole knives thing will be explained next chapter as well.

Duo's hanyou: Well, you got your update.

Stary Angel1: Yeah. I hope you like this chapter to. Sorry about the long wait.


	7. Could This Be Love?

Ok...I know it's short, but more should be on the way. Enjoy

> > > > > > >

Chapter 7: Could this be Love?

I awoke the next morning to sunlight streaming in through an open window and straight into my face. Annoyed I rolled over and buried my head into the closest pillow I could find. But I found I was wide awake now and unable to return to the blissful unawareness that sleep offered me. What had happened last night? My memories had returned, that much I understood, but the whole thing with Phoenix confused me. I had been under the impression that he was cold hearted and completely void of feeling. But that was wrong. He'd held me…I had been safe in his embrace. He even drove the monsters within away. I wanted that so badly, to the point that I'd do anything for another moment like that one. I needed to be near him.

So I jumped out of bed, still in the same clothes I'd been wearing the day before, and ventured out into the house to find Phoenix. I had gotten down the hall and almost down the steps to the first floor when I was stopped by a voice from behind.

"You should be resting."

I stopped at the bottom of the stairs and smiled. It seemed that he'd found me first.

"I was looking for you," I answered as I turned to face him. "Are they upset? At what happened I mean," I was referring to those I was suppose to have met last night of course. After my…episode, I was in no condition to meet anyone.

"Not upset, merely confused. You owe us an explanation," Phoenix replied.

Should I tell him? Could I trust him? I quickly realized that two days ago I hadn't even known him…but something inside told me that I had to tell someone. Maybe telling him would ease the pain…

"You have to make me a promise first," I said softly.

He gave a slight nod.

"You can't tell anyone."

"I won't," he replied in a tone that instantly assured me.

So I walked back to the bedroom I had been asleep in and sat down on the bed. Phoenix followed closing the door shut behind him.

"So?" He prompted.

"I have a question first," there was just something I had to know. "Why did you hold me?"

He seemed a little taken aback by the question at first, but I suppose he deemed it a worthy question after a moment.

"You were crying and it seemed like it would help." His eyes met mine and I understood that his feelings were confusing him just as much as mine were confusing me. That meant he felt it to…

"Four days ago, when I was still with my adoptive parents my…my adoptive father he…" why was it so hard to tell him? And why was I crying?

The sun was so bright…too bright, shining into my face. But even that didn't matter as what happened next paled in comparison everything that had happened before it.

I felt his hand touch my face, wiping one of my tears away gently.

"Don't cry," he whispered as he tilted my head back ever so slightly. I closed my eyes somewhat instinctively and was surprised as, not even a moment later, his lips touched my own. It was pure bliss, feeling the soft touch of his lips against mine. I wanted it to last forever…but then nothing really can, now can it.

When it ended and the shock had subsided I looked up at him. His eyes no longer held the indifference they had before. Something else was there in its place, something I hadn't ever seen before…

"Please…don't stop," I begged. I knew I was tempting a demon of sorts, but I really didn't care at the moment. I just had to feel that again.

He took one quick look at the door. I followed his gaze to the unlocked door handle. That problem was quickly remedied as Phoenix moved to lock the door before turning towards me again that same mischievous gleam in his eyes that he'd had while committing Grand Theft Auto.

"You're sure about that," he replied gently as he came back over to the bed, moving to sit on the bed next to me.

"Just…don't hurt me…please…" I couldn't take being hurt again. It would break me.

To that he actually smiled, something that I thought made him look quite charming.

"I wouldn't dream of it."

It was late afternoon when Dual knocked on the door of my room. Phoenix had gone, claiming that I had kept him too long. So I was alone, going through the events of the morning in my mind.

"Kiyo?" came Dual's voice from the doorway. I looked up and gave him a smile, a true smile. "What are you so happy about?"

"Nothing," was my reply.

"You gave us all quite a scare last night," Dual said, coming to sit beside me on the bed.

"Sorry about that," I answered, truly sorry about the way I'd acted. Then again it had sorta been out of my control.

"Better now?"

"Much better," I replied truthfully. I knew that I would forever be haunted by what had happened, but Phoenix had showed me so much…and together we were beginning to heal some of the mental wounds that the incident had inflicted.

"Think you're ready to meet the others now?" Dual asked.

I thought about it for a moment then gave a nod.

"I would like Phoenix to be there," was my only request. One that startled Dual a little.

"Ummm….sure. I'll ask him once I tell dad that you're ready," Dual replied while moving to stand. "Just wait a while. I'll be back to get you when everything's ready."

So Dual left.


End file.
